West Bend, WI | The Exclusive Company going out of business: The Exclusive Company announced it plans to close its stores within months. The company posted on Facebook that the record store chain “cannot, and should not,” go on after the death of its founder, James Giombetti, also known as “Mr. G,” who died last year. Giombetti was the voice of the record store, known for his TV commercials that packed 50 seconds of information into a 30-second spot and his closing catchphrase, “Say it with me, The Exclusive Company!” The record store says Giombetti founded The Exclusive Company in West Bend in 1956 and expanded the chain into Oshkosh, Appleton, Green Bay, Milwaukee and other cities. Giombetti billed it as “America’s oldest full-line independent record store.” According to the Facebook post, some locations will continue as independent, locally-owned record shops. It did not identify which locations. The Green Bay store’s liquidation sale is set to start on April 12 and go through July. The store will be closed Sunday, April 10, and Monday, April 11, to get ready for the liquidation.
Sheffield, UK | Sheffield record store set for temporary extension on outdoor seating: Coles Corner is wanting to keep the outside structure used by its cafe that was set up during the pandemic. Plans by a Sheffield independent business to maintain outdoor seating set up during the pandemic look set for temporary approval. Coles Corner, a gift and record shop with a cafe bar on Abbeydale Road, has applied to Sheffield Council to keep a one storey side extension permanently. The structure is used for dining, with space for four tables. The planning application is due to be decided on by the council’s planning and highways committee next week, with officers recommending approval but only for 18 months. Officers say: “Taking all of the matters raised into account, it is considered that the side extension as built owing to its use of uncoordinated materials of a temporary nature has a detrimental impact upon the character and appearance of the host property and the surrounding area.
Lubbock, TX | Lubbock’s Ralph’s Records to be featured in new short film: Ralph’s Records is a well-loved shop here in Lubbock that sells CDs, DVDs, video games and, you guessed it, vinyl records. They’ve been a staple in the Hub City since they opened in 1980, providing their customers with great experiences and standing out with their iconic pink building. Vinyl record collectors are not the only ones to love Ralph’s. Filmmakers are taking notice as well. Specifically, award-winning filmmaker Adam Paul Stone decided to work with Ralph’s Records for his short film that’s coming out soon. The short film is titled A Spinning Record, and the official trailer was just dropped yesterday on the film’s official Instagram and YouTube pages. Ralph’s Records also shared the new trailer and referenced a post they made while filming back in February. The post from earlier this year was made as a head’s up to Ralph’s customers that they would be filming that day and to not be alarmed if they see cameras around while shopping.
Northampton, UK | Spunout Northampton reveals line-up for Record Store Day 2022: Annual event traditionally brings out queues of fans throughout the day. The owner of Spunout in Gold Street says they are working hard to “make it a big one for Northampton”. He said: “This international celebration of the local independent record shop & it’s invaluable contribution to the uniqueness of most towns is being held on Saturday April 23 and we’ll be opening at 8am to make the most of this brilliant day. “Many of the biggest names in the music business such as Foo Fighters, The Who, Stevie Nicks and Noel Gallagher have got behind the day by releasing rare records, cds and tapes purely for the event,” he said. “We will have a massive selection of these great collectable records and will be bringing our own musical entertainment in the shape of vinyl DJ sets all day, bands and artists during the afternoon.”
Lansdowne, PA | Record Store Day at Vinyl Revival: Vinyl Revival, 35-37 N. Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, Pa., celebrates the return of a “traditional” Record Store Day, the international day to celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store, on April 23, 2022, from 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. After scaling back Record Store Day parties the past few years, Vinyl Revival is excited to celebrate the annual event with their customers once again. Shoppers can find exclusive releases, enjoy music by DJ Joe Foley from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., free Record Store Day promotional materials with a $50 purchase while supplies last, and complimentary light refreshments and drinks. Additionally, everyone who makes a purchase will receive a coupon for 20% off a future purchase. For more information or to sign up for Vinyl Revival’s e-newsletter, visit vinylrevivalrecords.com.
Durango, CO | For the love of vinyl: Record swap finds home at Ska Brewing. Gathering will be held Tuesday night. It’s not hoarding if it’s vinyl. If you collect records, you know this meme is true; some would even claim a totally altruistic motivation for continuing to feed a large collection: It’s keeping albums out of landfills and preserving them for future generations. It’s been a couple of years since the Four Corners Vinyl Record Club has hosted a swap to help collectors and newbies hunt for their particular holy grail. But, alas, the wait is over – from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Ska will be the place to go to buy records and equipment, talk about records, hear local musician Rob Webster spin records – and drink Ska beer. There are way worse ways to spend a Tuesday night. Phil Gallacher, president of the record club (and advertising and marketing special for Directory Plus), said that in the past few years, there has been an increasing interest among younger people in playing and collecting vinyl records.
Utica, NY | International Record Store Day has Oneida County roots. Which Utica shops inspired it? Utica Free Academy class of 1987 graduate and South Utica native Chris Brown recalled riding his bike to Record Giant in the days of his youth. He also has fond memories of shopping at Last Unicorn and Record Realm to add to his vinyl collection. “My idea of what a record store should be came from those three stores,” he said. Brown is now the chief financial officer of Bull Moose Music in Portland, Maine. He is also famed as the original inspiration, along with Criminal Record’s Eric Levin, of the international Record Store Day holiday. An inside look of Off-Center Records at 116 Bleeker St in Utica on Friday, April 1, 2022. Record Store Day was pitched in 2007 at a Baltimore gathering of independent record store representatives to share and celebrate the excitement of their record store community. The first Record Store Day was April 19, 2008. “I wanted to get the message out that there was a real party going on at record stores,” Brown recalled.
Meet Heba Kadry, Mastering Engineer to the Indie Stars: Catching up with the in-demand studio guru, who’s worked with everyone from Björk to Big Thief, about her empathetic approach to an unnecessarily mysterious field. …In this room, Kadry is a therapist and a translator, a problem solver and a highly skilled technician. She’s put her refining touch on dozens of records over the last five years, from Oscar-nominated scores to Yaeji mixtapes, Beach House B-sides to Diamanda Galás remasters. In addition to mastering—that is, putting a final polish on songs and perfecting a record’s overall sonic cohesion—she advises on track sequencing to give albums a memorable flow, a process she likens to a curator deciding the layout of an art show. She brings a compassionate approach to a field that sometimes has a reputation for gatekeeping and sour personalities. “You should never take the artist for granted or make them feel like they don’t know anything,” she says. “When someone comes into my mastering room, I really want to demystify the process, this ‘shrouded in mystery’ bullshit. That is another trope of mastery that needs to be completely eviscerated.”
